2011 was a pretty darn good year for the Shepard family.
In January I started my current job that I am grateful to still be able to call my "dream job" exactly one year later. God was at work when I took the phone call from my supervisor describing the position that they were creating at Sunny Ridge and how they were hoping I would feel led to come on board. I have loved every minute of creating and developing new programs for adoptive families that will support them throughout the years and not just when their new family is initially formed.
At the beginning of the year we also started attending a small group affiliated with our church that has led us to be able to form some great friendships that continue to grow. We feel fortunate to have such great friends in our lives who are not only fun to hang around but also lift us up in prayer when we need it (and even when we think we don't!).
Jimm's company grew; physically and monetarily (thanks goodness!). Their new company is Fidei Group, Inc. where Jimm is partners with our good friends Tom and Steve. They have even hired a full time employee and are now looking for an office manager as well :-) It's awesome to see my husband be so proud of the work that they have accomplished together.
WE GOT OUT OF DEBT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can you tell I'm excited about that? When Jimm and I got married we sat down and looked at how much debt both of us had accrued while we were single. And I cried. We consulted several companies and were pretty much told that we should file bankruptcy. That wasn't an option for us. And I am glad that we now have the peace and pride of paying off our credit card debt & student loans. We couldn't have done it without the help of our parents who were there for us when sometimes the monthly bills were just too much (especially when dealing with medical payments for cancer treatments, baby hospital bills....and when I lost my job).
Ethan turned 4 and Reese turned 1. I am SO incredibly blessed to be a mommy to these two amazing kids.
Jimm and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary on September 9th. We went downtown for dinner and saw a Second City comedy show. It was awesome to stay out late without having to worry about getting home to the kids and what time we would need to get up in the morning (our parents watched the kiddos). We have been through quite a bit in our 6 short years as a married couple, but God has given us the strength, courage, love and support that we so desperately needed and now I can say we are in a really good place.
We started looking into the possibility of moving into a new home and we are pre-certified for a mortgage (which I can tell you is a huge accomplishment considering where we were 5 years ago!). We are in a good place to be able to do this now and the housing market is still great in regards to buying! We are planning to look west of where we are now...better school systems, shortened commute for me, closer to friends of ours and big, older houses for cheap! :-)
I continue to get monitored every 4 months by my oncologist. I went in at the beginning of December and everything looks good. I have a mammogram scheduled for early January and will have to continue with typical check-ups. In May of 2012 I will have the 5 year anniversary of my diagnosis. It's a pretty big milestone/anniversary in the world of cancer. Most recurrences occur in the first 5 years after diagnosis/treatment. Not holding my breath or anything.
We spent a wonderful time with our family and friends this Christmas. We truly are blessed and we continue to pray for those friends and family members in our lives that received bad news about their health or circumstances this past year. We also celebrate with friends who will be (or hope to be) expanding their families this year through birth and adoption!
Here's to a wonderful 2012!
No comments:
Post a Comment